Jan. 20, 2003 — Silicon Microstructures Inc. (SMI), a subsidiary of Elmos Semiconductor AG, is almost done transferring equipment from its Hawthorne, Calif. facility to the Milpitas, Calif., foundry it purchased in July from the IC Sensor Division of Measurement Specialties Inc. and has commenced an expansion of its MEMS wafer foundry capabilities.

“The … operation is now fully up and running here,” said Mike Dunbar, SMI’s director of strategic account development. The expansion, due to be complete in mid-2003, includes infrastructure upgrades, the purchase of additional equipment and a transition from 4-inch to 6-inch wafer capability. Dunbar said he thinks the company’s business will grow about 50 percent this year compared to last year. He predicted growth in markets the company is already supplying, such as that for manifold absolute pressure and fuel vapor sensors.

SMI supplies pressure sensors mainly for consumer, automotive and medical applications, in addition to custom micromachined devices for industrial and aerospace purposes.